O Me O Life Episode 05 - Bill Thoo

In this episode I chat with Pedro, the founder of Cinemot film. We talk about starting Maquinas de Outros Tempos (machines out of time) as a vintage gear shop in Porto, Portugal. An initial idea to help pay university bills has grown into a family-owned business providing analogue goods and services to Porto and beyond. We talk about some of the challenges with starting and running a small business and tease some potential offerings for the future.   Cinemot’s website - https://cinemotfilm.com Cinemot’s IG - @cinemotfilm   Another recent interview with Alex from Classic Camera Revival - http://www.alexluyckx.com/blog/2025/10/14/classic-camera-revival-episode-209-a-sit-down-with-cinemot/   Cinemot at Analogue Wonderland (UK) - https://analoguewonderland.co.uk/collections/cinemot-films   Cinemot at Tuttle Cameras (US - this is Porto but you can search for other emulsions) - https://www.tuttlecameras.com/cinemot-porto-1987-200d-c41-35mm-film.html   Coimbra review by Alastair Holland on 35mmc - https://www.35mmc.com/01/10/2025/cinemot-coimbra-with-love/   The Old Camera Guy has reviewed some of the Cinemot films on his YouTube channel: Amalia - https://youtu.be/Tv6lWzbFmys?si=nyKNkssRhuFkXPQ5 Fado - https://youtu.be/jZ8Bh8iEylg?si=m_tkQXpX0HTdqwTK Coimbra - https://youtu.be/MS22GofBf38?si=q-woR1Rma_9bbHRb Lisboa - https://youtu.be/b-grfk2EPpA?si=jEeZU7aTLeuKeAnY Santa Cruz - https://youtu.be/_J4yDsgN7aM?si=bvOkW-tF-RXxHI9y   Music by @myopic_me   Questions by @bsanfordjr

In this episode I am joined by Aviva who is a photographer based in southwest Canada. She got started in photography through doing fashion shoots with friends before eventually opening a boutique film lab, organizing photowalks and meetups and leveraging her love of teaching to help others grow their photography through darkroom workshops. Be sure to follow and subscribe to her newsletter!   Aviva's website - https://avivasteinwotten.ca/ On Instagram - @avivasw.photo   Music by @myopic_me   Questions by @bsanfordjr

In this episode, I chat with Jess Jones about pull-apart film, cyanotypes and printing our work. We talked about how we sometimes move on from our hobbies, the ups and downs of monetizing our creative output and about style. We talk about the film community whatever that means. We also covered photowalks, how travel and music may inspire our work and how creative gives us an outlet but also feeds back into us.   Jess on IG: @yessyones   Music by @myopic_me   Questions by @bsanfordjr

In this episode I was grateful to have Bill Thoo chat with me about capturing the Milky Way on film, trichrome firework images, the impact of travel and collaboration on creativity and embracing new outlets. Though formally trained and working in the sciences, Bill is a thoughtful and supportive creative and it was a pleasure to hear his perspectives on these topics.   You can follow Bill on Instagram: @biillthoo Bluesky: @billthoo.bsky.social Mastodon: https://mastodon.art/@Billthoo   You can listen to Bill's On Location episode on Astro Photography on Sunny 16 Presents - https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-q4ed9-eef4bb   Music by: @myopic_me   Questions by: @bsanfordjr

In this episode I had a great time talking with my friend Roxanna Angles about her perspectives on creativity and its impact on our lives. During COVID, Roxanne put together a book about mindfulness and photography based on her experiences in leading a film photography club at schools she has worked at as a counselor. She talks about her observations on how photography impacts young lives at an awkward time along with how it helps feed her own soul.   Roxanna is @roxannalog on IG and Lomography. Here is a profile that Lomography did on Roxanna a little while back - https://www.lomography.com/magazine/339777-newcomer-of-the-week-roxanna-angles Roxanna's book - https://www.blurb.com/b/10326957-an-introduction-to-mindfulness-through-photograph Analog Series was the short series that helped inspire Roxanna initially - https://www.youtube.com/@analogseries4969   Some of the people who've helped with the club: https://filmphotographyproject.com https://cinestillfilm.com @kenbertramphoto on IG   Negative Positives - https://open.spotify.com/show/4kx6YjPOUEuolbDYoRXTxs?si=57a7fb6ea064401d Sunny 16 - https://open.spotify.com/show/7dEluZF050yxBVHvyPlb25?si=c53fbdc54abd4955   We talked about a couple of our mutual friends and talented creatives: Suzanne Pedersen - @b.roll.backup Jessica Jones - @yessyones   Music by @myopic_me Questions by @bsanfordjr

In this episode, I was happy to be joined by Jessica Chriesman, the Director of Education and Outreach for Sidewalk Cinema and MAP Fellow. We talked about storytelling and how humans craft narratives to make sense of their world. She shared her approach to documentary filmmaking and her perspectives on the film festival experience. We also talked about the Book and Film club she organizes and about creativity.   Jessica's website - https://jessicachriesman.com/ You can watch her documentary "Philoxenia" that we discussed here - https://jessicachriesman.com/portfolio/philoxenia-sfa-version/ You can follow her on Instagram at @jctellsstorries Sidewalk Cinema's website - https://sidewalkfest.com/cinema/ Sidewalk on Instagram - @sidewalkfilm   Theme song "Zero Me" by @myopic_me Questions by @bsanfordjr

In this episode of On Location, several film photography podcasters who are located generally in the southeast United States gathered to discuss a film photography weekend event they have been planning. There will be multiple events, but it will all start with a photowalk at the Tennessee Aquarium at 10:00 am on Saturday the 9th of August and they would love for as many film photographers as possible to attend.   The event on Photowalk.me - https://www.photowalk.me/photowalk/the-great-film-photo-meetup-chattanooga   The Facebook event - https://www.facebook.com/share/1FZ3v3sRj5/   On the episode you hear Joe Pollock, Clayton Sharp, Mike Kukavica, Kevin Lane, Mike Gutterman, Wayne Setser and Billy Sanford representing a mix of film photography podcasts. You can follow along with all of them on IG at: @joeclaytonmikepod @joepollockphotos @claytonsharpphoto @drunk.darkroom @ujcpodcast @chattalogphotography @wayne_setser @negativepositives @guttermanphoto @bsanfordjr   You can join the conversation over on the Sunny 16 Discord.    Get in touch at [email protected]   Music used is: Positive Fat Bass Intro Loop by WinnieTheMoog Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/6093-positive-fat-bass-intro-loop License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

In this episode, Tamara Harper was kind enough to share her experiences working in multiple disciplines. From enjoying various needle and fiber arts to running a small business - to writing a book on her experience as a parent managing screen time - to being a trained pianist, music teacher and singer and songwriter, Tamara talks us through some of her thoughts on authenticity and creativity.     Smallwoods Studios - https://www.smallwoods-studios.com Scarves for Hillary - https://www.smallwoods-studios.com/secretary-clinton Monstrosity Project - https://www.smallwoods-studios.com/monstrosity TEDxBirmingham - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-og4fj4d1Q Living Restfully: A Skeptic’s Guide to Raising Children Screen-Free - https://www.amazon.com/Living-Restfully-Skeptics-Children-Screen-Free-ebook/dp/B00VNY6JQG IG: @thesmallwoods   Style Shop - https://styleshop.bandcamp.com Summer Cut - https://styleshop.bandcamp.com/album/summer-cut IG: @styleshopmusic   Theme song “Zero Me” by @myopic_me   Questions by @bsanfordjr

To kick off this series, I was honored to be joined by Tiffany Goolsby who I initially became familiar with through the vibrant images she submits to the Frugal Film Project every month. We talked about how she became interested in photography, then her interest in film specifically. We talked about the benefits of using the same kit over a period of time, what she enjoys about photography, and a little about what engaging in photography adds to her life experience.   I hope you enjoy this initial installment and please do check out Tiffany's work.  Website: www.tiffanygoolsby.com IG: @tiffanyshootsfilm The Frugal Film Project: https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1Fr4xRk1BD/   If you feel strongly compelled to get in touch, you can comment on the IG post of this episode on Sunny 16 Presents (@sunny16presents) or email [email protected].   Featuring the musical stylings of Graeme Jago (@myopicme on IG) I am Billy Sanford (@bsanfordjr) and just enjoy talking to creative people. Thank you for listening.

Coming soon, a new podcast series called O Me! O Life! Inspired by the existential crisis of Walt Whitman in the wake of the Industrial Revolution in the late 19th century, we'll attempt to explore what verse we might add to the enduring play that is humanity.   Featuring the musical stylings of Graeme Jago.   Watch this space!